“I saw death”, William Gomis looks back on his fight that was canceled for medical reasons

French MMA fighter William Gomis, whose fight scheduled for Friday at the UFC was canceled for medical reasons related to his “cut” to lose weight, returned Saturday to the ordeal he experienced and told about having “saw death”.

Gomis was scheduled to face Brazilian Jean Silva on Saturday on the UFC 301 card, but his bout was canceled after the Frenchman weighed in. The 26-year-old fighter was nicknamed “Jaguar” appeared in a worrying state, staggering, staring off into space and even having trouble getting on and off the scale. The chilling images created many reactions on social networks.

On Saturday, Gomis first wanted to reassure the fans: “As you can see, it feels much better. Thanks for all the messages I’m getting, it’s amazing”he said in a video posted on Instagram.

He then returned to his “cut”the sometimes extreme weight loss phase that fighters must endure before a fight.

“I had a big problem during my cut which was only 2 kilos. I have already done a lot more, 2 kilos is not much. But I had a stomach ache, (…) and things went wrong”he said, explaining that he drank tap water in Brazil. “When they tried to rehydrate me, I started throwing up, my body was no longer accepting water.”

“After my cut, I gained weight and then threw up four times in a row. I had no more water in my body, but I threw up impossible puddles”he continued.

“(I was) stubborn, determined, ready to fight (but it was) completely stupid because it was becoming dangerous for my health. I (my manager) refused to call the doctors, but luckily he did anyway. I think he probably saved my life because I’ll tell you the truth, I saw death. I’m very happy to be alive and to have gotten out.”

THE “weight reducing”an intense – and controversial – process of losing weight quickly before the weigh-in is practiced by almost all MMA fighters.

The most intense phase takes place in the hours before the weigh-in. The fighters alternate between hot baths and heating blankets until they sweat out several kilograms of water. A rehydration phase follows to regain the lost kilos within a few hours, thus hoping to have a weight and power advantage over the opponent.